Puzzles Within Puzzles
by ActuallyRedEyes
Summary: When the light from the puzzle died down, Yugi decided he wasn't going to take this treatment any longer. But it wasn't Yugi thinking this. It wasn't him at all. Vol. 1/Chapter 1-The First Judgement.


A/N: My take on Atem's first awakening, operating under the assumption that he was not yet aware of his existence as a separate being from Yugi.

The young man had collapsed the moment he fitted the final gold piece into place, the golden shine pulsing from the artifact clasped in his hands, slowly dying away into darkness as he regained consciousness. For some reason, he was aching all over; what had happened to him? Rubbing at his forehead in confusion, he stared at the puzzle as his mind struggled to put together why it was important until it clicked:

 _This is mine. I put it together. Its my treasure._

That sounded right. Yes, there it was. Traces of memories; he remembered nights alone fumbling with golden puzzle pieces clicking together and trying to find the magic secret to completing it. And it was incredibly important; to the point where he dug around in his drawers looking for something to string it on until his hands touched a thin length of rough, brown rope. As he wound the artifact around his neck, something else still seemed to eat at him. What else was he still forgetting?

 _'This isn't an ordinary puzzle, Yugi'_

Of course, he couldn't believe he'd forgotten. The puzzle must have given him quite a shock if he couldn't even remember his own name, even for a moment. The headache didn't seem to be going away...

There was a small pile of coins and bills scattered across the beside table, and Yugi's eyes narrowed on them. For some reason the sight gave him a sharp twinge of anger and strangely foreign feeling of anxiety.

 _'I'll leave you a bodily reminder to pay me.'_

Now the pain in his joints made more sense, and even though Yugi knew for certain that this wasn't the first time this had happened, this time it actually made him angry. _'Just for money... Such disgusting greed._

 _Someone should_ _ **put him in his place.**_ _Someone...'_

 _'To the one who controls me, I will give dark wisdom and strength.'_

His fingers trailed along the golden pendant's edge and the answer came to him almost instinctively, as though he'd known what to do all along. It was like the act of solving the puzzle came with the knowledge of how to wield it. The doors of possibility were swung wide open before him and then suddenly, Yugi couldn't stop himself. Ushio, I know exactly how you'll answer for this. The workings of a plan formed in his mind, and the teen moved to his feet and dug into the closet, and changed into something more fitting for a trek to the school. His...regular outfit should do just fine for this.

Yugi gathered up the scattered yen on the bedside table and looked it over critically before putting it away; he'd need a lot more than his spare change to lure in Ushio. As he stepped back, the teen stumbled a little over his schoolbag and knocked it over, causing a little envelope to slide out onto the ground. Curious, Yugi examined it, unable to remember it from his oddly fuzzy memories. A brief look inside revealed a stack of crisp bills, clearly put there by someone else.

 _Who, wait...Grandpa...thank you. If all goes well, I can bring this back to you._

Now for the next step. Yugi had to call Ushio out; a wide area like the school should do just fine for a meeting. While it was still dark of course, and before any curious passerby interrupted. But how was he supposed to contact his quarry?

 _Tall and broad, the sash of a Hall Monitor fixed across his chest._

There should be...a directory for the school...emergencies and such. The headache was making it hard to concentrate, but the hall monitor's number should be listed in there too... Or maybe he could resort to the...phone book. Yes, there was the number.

I found you.

Yugi crept downstairs and grabbed the phone from its cradle, taking it back to his room to dial in relative peace. The phone on the other line picked up after the third ring, a familiar voice snarling out over the connection, "Do you have any idea how late it is?"

"Sorry, I just..." The words came to him unbidden. Ushio preyed upon nerves; if he tried his luck with assertiveness, the quarry would slip his grasp tonight. "I just thought...you'd want your money." A beat, maybe two, and Yugi knew he'd already hooked the greedy fool.

Then, just as suspected, "Where?"

"The school, near the entrance..." He checked the clock nearby, the slow curve of a smirk sliding across his face, "...at midnight." Ushio agreed; of course he would, he wanted his money didn't he? When Yugi hung up the phone, he'd already planned out every step, expected every reaction and knew the end result. He pulled on his uniform jacket and stepped cautiously down the stairs, careful not to wake his grandfather and tip him off.

He closed the door silently behind him and then vanished effortlessly into the night almost as though he owned it, the glittering, golden puzzle bouncing on his chest like a living thing. Yugi didn't let his hands leave the puzzle for more than a moment or two, the pulsing pain behind his temples fading with the power that poured in to replace it. His treasure would guide him. Its glow was insistent, impatient... **hungry.**

And that was how Ushio found him at the school gates, delicately turning over the priceless artifact in his hands, sneering at him from his perch. From anyone else's view, the expression was alien and unnerving on Yugi's face, but in the here and now, it felt perfectly fitting to the boy.

 _"Good of you to come, Ushio-san."_

 _ **"We're going to play a game."**_

* * *

When the morning came, Yugi Mutou awakened already dressed, exhausted, and wearing the puzzle around his neck. But, more curious was the conspicuously blank spot in his memory.

That and a very conveniently insane hall monitor rolling in filth at the school gates.


End file.
